


a fickle heart and a bitterness

by varulve



Series: Tumblr Prompts [7]
Category: Daredevil (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-01
Updated: 2016-04-01
Packaged: 2018-05-30 11:40:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6422449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/varulve/pseuds/varulve
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>prompt from an anonymous user: “tell me a secret.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	a fickle heart and a bitterness

“Tell me a secret,” his voice catches her off guard. It had been touch and go ever since he stumbled into her apartment, blood dripping between his already stained fingers. An apology had been on his lips, ready to fumble forth when his breath caught and he fell forward with a heavy thump. For a brief moment Karen had panicked about her neighbors hearing, about the carpet that would surely stain, before jumping into action.

She carefully, afraid of doing anymore damage, flipped him over. His breathing was ragged, catching and shaking, his chest rising in a funny way. “God damn it Frank,” she found herself saying out loud as she ripped at his blood-soaked shirt. There was a cut, it was deep and the edges were fizzling, a darker color creeping in along the edges. 

“Fuck.”

Karen wasn’t prepared to handle this, she did her best helping him stitch up some of the places he couldn’t reach. She had become a pro at dressing his wounds with gauze, cleaning away the blood and making sure nothing got infected. But this, she ran her fingers gently over the gash and he flinched, even unconscious it was clearly painful. God damn it. She cupped his face gently, “I’ll be right back.” 

Her phone was in the bedroom, stupid, she should have learned by now just to keep it on her at all times. The phone was ringing before she even know what she as going to say.

“Karen?” his voice was groggy, he’d been asleep. For once in his vigilante career he was sleeping and fuck she needed him.

“Frank’s hurt,” Karen hadn’t realized she was crying until she heard her own voice. It sounded foreign to her, a quivering pain she hadn’t heard before. “Bad, I can’t… there’s something wrong with it.” She can almost feel the tension in the air become electric as Matt stays silent on the other end of the line. “I don’t know what shit he’s in but I can’t….” 

Can’t what? Help him? Lose him? Her heart was pounding, she wouldn’t be surprised if Matt could hear it over the phone. “I need help, please,” there was a desperation to her voice she wished she could be ashamed of. 

“I’ll be there in five,” his voice was tight, ready to give a lecture the moment Frank was in the clear no doubt. “Stay safe, Karen,” and with that the line clicked.

Karen dropped the phone back on the bed and took a steadying breath, god damn it. She went back to Frank, carefully kneeling beside him and taking his hand in hers. God had he been this cold when he got here? Her eyes flicked to his chest, it was raising less and less, his breathing so soft she couldn’t hear it.

“You have to stay with me,” she said in a quiet voice. “Please, Frank, don’t do this not here not now,” she let his hand fall and cupped his face one more. “You gotta stay with me,” Karen repeats, her voice shaking. “I’m gonna clean you up, and then Matt’ll be here and he’ll know what to do.” 

She didn’t know if she said that last part for him or for herself. She moved away, reluctantly, to get a cloth and disinfectant. It was the least she could do, and hopefully it would waste enough time so that Matt would be there. So Matt could help him. 

Karen had gotten him cleaned up, all the dried and caked on blood now staining a handful of washcloths, when there was knock at the door. She nearly jumped out of her skin, but caught herself and opened the door. Matt was there with a woman she didn’t recognized. Fear flashed across her face but Matt shook his head - he knew of course he knew - “this is Claire, she’s okay,” he promised.

Stepping out of the way Karen ran a nervous hand up and down her arm. “He came in and just collapsed,” her voice was shaky and the woman gave her a soft concerned look. “I don’t know what got him, or or how long he’s been bleeding or how much he’s lost, but his breathing started to get worse and he’s getting cold,” her words tumbled out quickly. Nerves on edge. 

Matt and Claire moved to the now prone, almost completely still figure of Frank ont he floor. “Shit,” that was Claire, she was kneeling and pulling on a pair of pale blue gloves and poking around. “I think you were right,” she said, turning to Matt who - Karen had missed - had kept walking. “Karen where do you keep-” his voice cut off and she heard him rummaging in her drawers and cabinets. 

He pulled out an odd concoction, some items from her own cabinet and a few things he had seemingly brought along. “It’s ready,” he said in a few seconds carefully bringing a fizzing and bubbling bowl over to Claire, kneeling beside her as she carefully tipped the contents onto Frank’s open, and now so much darker, wound. 

It seemed to do something, Frank’s eyes shot open and a low shout of pain came forth. “What was it?” Karen asked, looking from Claire, who was now carefully wrapping the wound, to Matt, his face set in deep concentration. “What the hell is going on?” Her voice was firmer, and Matt turned his face towards her. 

“He was poisoned,” he didn’t say much more, as he rose and went to the window. “I have to go,” he was back to the bag he’d brought, pulling out the all too familiar red mask he had shown her months and months ago. “Claire can you handle this?” he was stepping out of the baggy sweatpants and pulling off the hoodie he’d been wearing.

Claire gave him a wave over her shoulder, she had finished wrapping his wound and was checking for any other injuries. “Yeah, go on and do your thing, I got this.” Matt gave a nod, and turned his head towards Karen before donning his mask and heading out to go do god knows what. 

Karen ran her hands through her hair, “I’m sorry.” Claire looked up, eyebrows raised. “I didn’t know Matt was going to bring someone else, I just...” her voice trailed off and she looked back at Frank. He looked still, but his breathing seemed more normal. “I’m sorry,” she repeated and took a deep breath.

“Hey, hey,” Claire’s voice was soft as she stood, stripping her blue gloves off. “It’s not your fault, I’m guessing you didn’t ask for big dark and spooky to turn up mostly dead in the middle of the night,” she sighed, rubbing her wrist across her forehead. “It’s gonna be a rough night for him, and he’s gonna have to get bedrest. Matt was telling me about whatever the fuck it is he got poisoned with and it sounds nasty.” Claire bit her lip and shook her head, “do you have somewhere we can move him too. The floor..isn’t ideal,” she looked back at Frank, as if already exhausted at the idea of moving him. “I should’ve had Matt do it before he left,” she shook her head even as Karen stood rooted to the spot. 

“Yeah, hang on,” she said after finally finding her words and moving to her bedroom. She cleared off her bed, put down a few towels - just in case, and then went back. It took a little bit, and Frank made more than a few noises of protest and pain during the process, but they finally got him settled in the bed.

Claire checked his bandages before taking a few things out and setting them on Karen’s nightstand. “That should be enough so you can rewrap it a few more times, if he gets worse or anything here-” and she paused to fish a piece of folded paper out of her pocket “-is my number, don’t hesitate to call, okay?” 

Karen nodded, holding the piece of paper tight in her hands, “thank you.” She pushed a smile, despite the quiver in her voice. “I have to owe you lunch or-or something for this,” that made Claire laugh.

“Put it on Matt’s tab, he’s the one who owes me, and it’s more than one,” Karen returned her smile with a more genuine one of her own. She walked Claire to the door, staring at the dark stain on her rug she’d have to deal with eventually, before returning to Frank. 

His eyes were shut, his chest rising and falling slowly but surely. Karen sighed and pulled a chair in next to the bed, curling up and - without much thought - grabbed Frank’s still chilled hand with her own. “You’re cold,” she said softly, brushing her thumb along the back of his hand. It was considerably bigger than her own. There was some blood still caked on it she had missed on her previous cleaning, but they could deal with that later. “I thought I was going to lose you,” she didn’t know if she was listening or why she was talking. She just...couldn’t sit in the silence right now. “Don’t do that to me again,” her voice was firm and she felt a small squeeze and looked up to Frank’s face - his eyes were on her, just barely cracked open.

“Shh,” his voice was broken, barely above a whisper. “I’m made of tough shit,” he tried to smile, but there was just nothing left in his tank. Frank sighed, his eyes shutting once more. “Talk to me sum’more, your voice is nice,” his words trailed off.

Karen slid off her chair and got closer to him, her hand that wasn’t holding his tightly gently brushing against his cheek. “Okay,” she said softly trying to think of something to say. “Okay,” and she launched into nonsense stories. Things that didn’t matter. How her day had been crap and this really didn’t help it, what she was planning to eat for lunch tomorrow, boring shit but it was all that she had. 

The sun had started to rise when he had spoken again, “tell me a secret.” She’s glad to hear his voice, glad to see some sign of life still with him. At some point during the night she had gone from the floor next to her bed, to sitting next to him, her hand trailing through his hair (which had grown out so much in the time she had known him) and continued to tell him stories.

“What kind?” she asked, her voice quiet - hoping to get a little more from him, just some more confirmation that he really was alright, that he was going to make it.

“A good one,” she can almost hear the shit eating grin that would have normally been on his face. 

Karen sighed, her hand stilling in his hair, she didn’t have good secrets. That was the point of secrets, to her, you kept the bad away from the world and locked it inside yourself. If you didn’t tell anyone - if you didn’t acknowledge it then maybe... just maybe it would go away.

It didn’t work but it was a nice thought.

A small smile split her face for a second as her hand continued it’s gentle swirls and patterns through his hair, “okay Frank I got one, you ready?” He gave a soft grunt in return, he was beginning to drift back off (which was probably for the best). 

“I think,” she paused her pinks heating up at the prospect of releasing this secret from the clutches of the darkest part of her chest. “I think I’m falling for you.”

Not that that could be much of a secret to him... not after tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys ! so i have a few more prompts over on tumblr and then (because there was an overwhelmingly positive response to the question i asked in my last fic!) i'll be focusing in on fleshing out and expanding/doing a follow up to fire away so look out for the rest of the prompts & that ! 
> 
> and thank you all for making my first foray into fanfic so wonderful (: !!


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